Jan. 30, 2012 2:35 p.m. | When Waukesha found out it was going to be a Gibson GuitarTown city a few weeks ago, officials knew the process would be quick.

The latest step in this process will take place on Tuesday when 10, 10-foot tall guitars were delivered to Spring Artisan Village, 521 Wisconsin Ave., in Waukesha.

Almont Gallery owner Lynn Gaffey, who is one of seven members on the Waukesha GuitarTown steering committee formed by Mayor Jeff Scrima, said the guitars were to arrive between 10:30 to 11 a.m. Tuesday.

Jan. 27, 2012 11:18 a.m. | We’re more than halfway through the high school basketball conference season and all of these matchups are repeats of earlier in the year, which should make for some intriguing games.

It’s always interesting to see how a team makes adjustments the second time around or if the same team has the same success as it did during the first game.

With the season approaching the last month of the year, conference positioning and playoff seeding is on the line.

Here is your guide for high school basketball games around the area tonight. All varsity games begin at approximately 7:30 p.m.

The teams I see winning are in bold. Unlike two weeks ago when I made predictions, I like all the home teams this week.

Jan. 25, 2012 2:00 p.m. | Waukesha - Waukesha County recycling staff will provide free blue bins for recyclables, while supplies last, at eight Waukesha County libraries in February and will be on hand during evening sessions to answer questions about recycling.

All the sessions run from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., except at the Waukesha library where the hours will be from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The dates and libraries: Brookfield on Feb. 7; Oconomowoc on Feb. 9; New Berlin on Feb. 13; Waukesha on Feb. 15; Elm Grove on Feb. 16; Town Hall Library at North Lake in the Town of Merton on Feb. 21; Pewaukee on Feb. 23 and Delafield on Feb. 27.

Jan. 25, 2012 1:16 p.m. | Members of the 1982 Milwaukee Brewers team is cherished and remembered like none other in franchise history.

This weekend, many of those players will be back together for a Brewers Reunion at the Waukesha SportsCards and Sports Memorabilia shop, located at 821 Meadowbrook Road #9.

From Robin Yount, to Paul Molitor, to Rollie Fingers, the former stars will be there to sign autographs and greet fans looking to reminisce about the only team in franchise history to advance to the World Series.

The fabulous infield duo of Yount, a two-time AL MVP who served as the team’s shortstop until the 1985 season, and Jim Gantner, the team’s longtime second baseman, will be first to sign autographs from 4:45 to 6:45 p.m. Friday.

Yount and Gantner are also rare breeds as they both played their entire careers with the Brewers. Yount, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999, was on the team from 1974–1993, while Gantner, a lifelong Wisconsin resident, played for the Brewers from 1976-1992.

Waukesha – A Waukesha man who allegedly uses corporal punishment on his children was charged this week in Waukesha County Circuit Court for hitting his 9-year-old son.

The 46-year-old man was charged with a felony count of physical abuse of a child for an incident that allegedly occurred Dec. 8.

According to the criminal complaint filed Jan. 23, the boy was at his father’s residence when his father became angry as the boy was doing poorly in school and the man accused the child of lying. The boy told police his father got out a belt but did not use it but the man did strike the boy "hard on the buttocks" and grabbed the boy "around the neck from behind and started throwing him around," the complaint said.

The boy told police that he had pain in his neck and jaw and officers did see red marks on the boy’s neck, the complaint said.

Jan. 23, 2012 3:50 p.m. | Milwaukee police are investigating the death of a 64-year-old Waukesha woman who was found dead Monday morning behind a supply store on the city's north side.

The woman was found at 7:15 a.m. near the intersection of N. 22nd St. and W. Capitol Drive, spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said.

"Investigators do not believe there was foul play involved," Schwartz said in an e-mail. "The woman suffered from mental health issues, and preliminary indications are that there is nothing suspicious about her death at this time. We continue to investigate. We are not releasing her name at this time as we have not been able to notify her family."

A woman living in a house nearby told Today's TMJ4 she was the one who called police after she saw a pair of white tennis shoes.

Jan. 22, 2012 3:50 p.m. | A 62-year-old alleged drunken driver from Waukesha was arrested early Sunday after he crashed his Jeep into a building in Waukesha, setting the car on fire.

According to a news release from the Waukesha County Sheriff's Office, authorities were called to the area of Sunset Drive and Center Drive at 3:36 a.m. Sunday, where the man's 1998 Jeep Cherokee was fully engulfed in flames.

Initial investigation showed that the man was driving north on Center Drive when he crossed over the centerline and struck a 2003 Ford Explorer. No occupants of the Explorer were injured as a result of the accident, the release said.

The 62-year-old continued north on Center and struck several mailboxes before he crossed over Sunset Drive and struck a building at 900 Sunset Drive. Officials said the building's gas meter was damaged as a result of the accident.

The Sheriff's Office and Waukesha police and fire departments responded to the incident.

Jan. 20, 2012 1:06 p.m. | Waukesha - Habitat for Humanity of Waukesha County will be building a second duplex in the neighborhood stabilization project called Dunbar Oaks on West Ave., formerly the site of the Waukesha YWCA.

The city's Redevelopment Authority this week awarded a lot to the agency after a church that had planned to develop the lot, New Beginnings, backed out.

Dunbar Oaks is a two-acre development of affordable homes started in 2009 through cooperation between the city and county of Waukesha and with the help of a federal $900,000 neighborhood stabilization grant. Besides the Habitat duplex, one other home by Tim O'Brien Homes is standing and a second one is about to be started. The builder's homes will be certified by the National Association of Home Builders as "green" with energy-conserving technology.

Habitat for Humanity is nearing completion of the first duplex, and two families are expected to move in this spring. The agency has begun its search for owners of the next duplex.

Mary Jo Gdovin, Habitat board member, said potential owners must meet strict qualifications and pass a screening process. Those interested can apply to Habitat for Humanity of Waukesha County to become the next owners of the planned duplex units at the agency's website, at www.hfhwaukesha.org/">www.hfhwaukesha.org, where qualifications are explained.

Jan. 22, 2012 8:05 p.m. | Town of Waukesha - The Town Board will appeal a circuit judge's ruling this month that advances an effort by the Town of Brookfield to incorporate much of its territory along with a portion of the Town of Waukesha.

In resolutions adopted after a closed meeting last week, the board restated its opposition to the incorporation and authorized town attorney Hector de la Mora and a second lawyer, Dean P. Laing, to pursue the appeal.

Waukesha County Circuit Judge Donald J. Hassin Jr. ruled Jan. 12 that the Town of Brookfield's petition to incorporate about 4.2 square miles as a village met state procedural requirements and could therefore be sent to the state for review.

In doing so, the judge rejected motions filed by the Town and City of Waukesha to dismiss the incorporation petition. The City of Brookfield, which has stated its willingness to annex the Town of Brookfield land to be incorporated, and the Village of Sussex also joined the objectors.

With the court's blessing, the Town of Brookfield and town resident Jay Walt, who began the incorporation petition drive, can now file its petition and supporting documentation, along with a $25,000 fee, with the state. Typically the Incorporation Review Board holds a public hearing before ruling in favor or against the incorporation.

Jan. 17, 2012 11:38 a.m. | To meet the rapid growth of adult undergraduate and graduate students in the Milwaukee metropolitan area, Concordia University Wisconsin is opening a Waukesha Center for the spring 2012 semester.

The new location, at N14-W23777 Stone Ridge Drive in Waukesha, will primarily serve residents of Waukesha, Jefferson, and Dodge counties by offering undergraduate accelerated-degree programs, as well as graduate-level courses and the BSN (Bachelor of Science degree in nursing) completion program.

Prospective students and the community can see the new facility and learn more about programs and degrees available there during a grand opening from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Feb. 16.

All programs are offered in an accelerated format with classes meeting one night per week. Students can work full time while earning their degree at the new Waukesha Center. For more information on the center, contact Director Rolanda Johnson at rolanda.johnson@cuw.edu or (262) 522-0990. Visit the website, https://www.cuw.edu/locations/waukesha/index.html, to learn more.

Founded in 1881, Concordia University Wisconsin’s main campus is located in Mequon. The university and its 10 educational centers and classroom locations have 7,618 undergraduate and graduate, traditional, as well as nontraditional students from 46 states and 28 foreign countries. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate majors, 14 master’s degree programs, and doctoral degrees in physical therapy, pharmacy and nursing practice. The university, which is affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, also offers a variety of adult learning opportunities.

Jan. 17, 2012 10:48 a.m. | Waukesha - A Village of Mukwonago woman was charged Jan. 11 with prostitution after she was solicited by an undercover City of Waukesha police officer.

Danielle M. Jones, 24, of 440 Atkinson St., was charged in Waukesha County Circuit Court with one misdemeanor count of prostitution.

According to the criminal complaint, a Waukesha officer cited Jones on Oct. 4, 2011, for operating as an unlicensed escort. Jones was advertising on an escorts category on a website, and the officer arranged to meet her at a hotel where she agreed to spend one hour with him for $200. The officer met Jones at the hotel, took her into custody and cited her, the complaint said.

The following day, the officer saw Jones had again placed an ad on the website. The ad referenced that protection was required, and it had photographs of her in various stages of undress, the complaint said.

The officer then contacted Jones, and she agreed to meet him at a Waukesha hotel. The conversation referred to having sexual intercourse and that he had to have protection, meaning using a condom, the complaint said.

Jan. 16, 2012 5:58 p.m. | For the first time in about a decade, the powerhouse Academic Decathlon team at Waukesha West High School has lost its long-time reign over its local rivals.

Instead, it was New Berlin Eisenhower High School's Academic Decathlon team that took first place in the regional competition on Friday, Jan. 13, with West coming in second, according to official results released Monday by Wisconsin Academic Decathlon.

Sixty teams advanced from November's local competitions to compete at five regional sites around the state on Friday. Eisenhower and West are among the 20 teams that will advance to the state competition on March 15 and 16 in Wisconsin Dells.

Waukesha West's long-time Academic Decathlon coach, veteran English teacher Duane Stein, retired with a wave of other teachers around the state at the end of the 2010-'11 school year. Under Stein, West won its regional competition and the state competition for at least 10 years in a row.

Eisenhower has often come in second to West, co-coach Erik Fountain said Monday. He said Eisenhower's team had a lot of returning students this year and put in a strong showing in all the subjects.

Waukesha – Former developer Dennis L. Gritzmacher, who served 14 months in federal prison for tax evasion, was charged Jan. 12 for bilking his former company out of more than $90,000 during a time when he was being investigated for tax evasion.

Gritzmacher, 64, of W310 N6644 Chenequa Dr., Town of Merton, was charged in Waukesha County Circuit Court with five felony counts of theft and one count of identity theft. Gritzmacher allegedly diverted funds into an account he opened at Citizen’s Bank of Mukwonago in New Berlin.

Jan. 13, 2012 10:49 a.m. | It’s Friday night which means it’s time for some high school basketball. And with it being the second week in January, conference season is in full swing. It’s the time where teams gain some separation in the standings and where we learn about the contenders. The Classic 8 has a full slate of games with all the Waukesha schools in action including some rivalry games.

Here’s a listing of the games with my predictions (The winner is in bold):

While West has lost three of its last four games, the Wolverines have had a chance in almost every game. West’s losses have been by an average of just six points with its last two (Arrowhead and Catholic Memorial) by a combined five points.

Jan. 12, 2012 10:32 p.m. | The Greater Milwaukee Foundation has announced $53,000 in grants to Waukesha County agencies, including $20,000 to NAMI Waukesha to support independent housing and advocacy programs for people with mental illness.

The NAMI grant matches a federal grant for the program, started in 2009.

The fourth quarter grants include $15,000 to the University of Wisconsin Extension-Waukesha County to support projects associated with the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative in a Waukesha west side neighborhood.

Another $18,000 was awarded Family Service of Waukesha to replace digital recording equipment for its Child Advocacy and Resource Center, which brings together law enforcement, medical and social service providers on forensic interviews needed in cases of child abuse.

The Waukesha County grants were part of $632,932 awarded in the fourth quarter to organizations in Ozaukee, Washington, Waukesha and Milwaukee counties.

Jan. 11, 2012 4:01 p.m. | Waukesha – A 28-year-old Waukesha man was charged Wednesday in Waukesha County Circuit Court for setting a car on fire and attempting to set a house on fire in Waukesha Dec. 31.

Quentin T. Morgan was charged with felony counts of attempted arson of a building, arson of property other than a building, and second-degree reckless endangerment.

According to the criminal complaint, Morgan, who lived with his girlfriend, Brittany Rudolph, at 1080 Whiterock Ave., had an argument during the early morning hours of Dec. 31. Morgan went to a bar and when he returned allegedly hit Rudolph in the face as well as another woman.

During a pushing match between Rudolph and Morgan a friend of Rudolph’s said she was calling the police and Morgan threatened to blow the house up, the complaint said.

Morgan was witnessed leaving the house and Tiffany Pease, who lives in the lower unit of the house saw flames coming from her 1998 Mercury Mountaineer. Morgan and Rudolph lived in the upper unit.

Jan. 09, 2012 2:52 p.m. | Waukesha - MSP Real Estate and Development Co. will bring revised plans for affordable apartments and a residential facility for seniors with dementia back to the Plan Commission on Wednesday.

The project would be located on 9.5 acres off Meadow Lane in Waukesha, immediately south of a Goodwill Industries building The company is seeking multi-family residential zoning for a 70-unit apartment building and a 36-unit "memory care" facility. It is also seeking site plan and architectural review and a conditional use permit for the senior residential facility.

In December the company had sought approval for 94 affordable housing apartments, but that number has been scaled back to 70, including 28 with one bedroom, 34 with two bedrooms and eight with three bedrooms. The height of the apartments was reduced from three stories to two.

The commission will also consider a request for a conditional use permit for a 15,000-square foot sports bar and table tennis center called Thumpers on the north side of Lincoln Ave. west of Les Paul Parkway, on the city's east side.

Waukesha Finance Committee Chairman Joe Pieper said the committee will tour the center and hear a general presentation on consolidated dispatch at its 7 p.m. meeting Tuesday. The meeting will be at the center at 1621 Woodburn Road, near the county's fleet and highway operations facility.

Pieper said the tour would serve as an introduction only, and that future meetings would focus on costs and benefits specific to Waukesha should it join the center.

The Waukesha County Communication Center opened in 2004 as a way to provide a more cost-efficient and effective emergency dispatch system achieved through economies of scale by combining operations. Currently about 40 emergency response agencies are dispatched by the center throughout Waukesha County with services to about 185,000 people. In addition, the center is the primary dispatch point to receive all wireless 9-1-1- emergency calls.

Consolidated dispatch is just one idea the Finance Committee will consider in upcoming months as potential cost saving or revenue producing measures. A lengthy list of suggestions will be discussed by the committee over the months ahead, said Pieper.

Jan. 09, 2012 2:24 p.m. | The man who fired a round from a .22-caliber rifle through a peephole in an apartment door in Waukesha Sunday night will be evaluated at a mental health facility before prosecutors consider any charges, police said Monday.

Waukesha police said the man was arrested after he fired a shot in the 700 block of E. North St.

"He did not summon the tenant in any way before firing the round," Waukesha police said in a news release Monday. "There was no known ill will between the suspect and the subject living in the apartment."

No one was injured and the man was arrested. Police are awaiting the results of the mental evaluation before deciding whether to seek a charge of recklessly endangering safety.

Jan. 09, 2012 2:20 p.m. | Waukesha - A vintage floor scale used to measure mud used for spa treatments at the Moor Down Mud Baths - a building now occupied by the Waukesha County Health and Human Services Department, where the scale stands in a boardroom - will be handed over to the Waukesha County Museum.

Museum President and Chief Executive Officer Kirsten Lee Villegas asked County Executive Dan Vrakas last week to donate the mud scale, which dates to use in the early 1900s, to the museum's collection.

Vrakas said Monday he has agreed to the donation. However, he is still weighing the museum's request to also donate a nearly 9-foot-tall statue of "Lady Justice" that once stood atop the old courthouse in downtown Waukesha, now home to the museum. The statue was moved to the current courthouse in 1972 but in the past few years has been out of view in a maintenance office. Conservation specialists are scheduled to evaluate the sculpture for needed repairs on Wednesday.

Muddy history

The health and human services building was founded as a resort in 1911, and a few years later a golf course was added. Real estate agent John Weber owned the land and had been unable to sell it for development because of soil conditions. Instead, he built a hotel and invented a couch for giving mud baths, with mud drawn from the surrounding area, according to a State Historical Society report.

Jan. 08, 2012 1:34 p.m. | Waukesha police are looking for someone who went on a shooting spree with a paintball gun Saturday night, damaging houses and mailboxes on Barstow St.

Police got the first calls about neon-green paintball damage from a house in the 300 block of Bidwell Ave. at 10:17 p.m. Saturday. Less than 30 seconds later, another call came in from a house around the corner in the 500 block of NW Barstow St. Every 30 seconds, the shooter hit another property, prompting calls to police. The shooter ended in the 400 block of NW Barstow St. after hitting nine locations within a quarter-mile area, police said.

Sgt. Joe Hendricks said the shooter who damaged houses and mailboxes in the area may have been a juvenile who recently got the gun, possibly as a Christmas present.

"Someone went around with a paintball gun. They ended up shooting a lot of homes in those areas," Hendricks said Sunday. "As far as we know there were no other houses where it happened."

Police checked the area but were not able to locate the shooter. According to police, an unknown vehicle involved had a loud muffler and was squealing tires as it traveled southbound toward Buena Vista.

Jan. 06, 2012 1:21 p.m. | In a news release from Capt. Ron Oremus of the Waukesha Police Department's Criminal Investigation Division Friday afternoon, the Waukesha Police Department has arrested and has taken the three suspects linked to a morning armed robbery in New Berlin into custody.

He said the Waukesha Police Department was notified by the New Berlin Police Department that an armed robbery had occurred at 8:13 a.m. in their city at Rindt's Service Station located at 19400 W. College Ave.

The suspects were seen leaving in a van which registered to an address in the City of Waukesha.

At approximately 8:40 a.m., the officers located the van in the 400 block of Baird St. (Baird St at S. West Ave) and the three subjects exited.

Oremus said after seeing the officers, the subjects ran into the yards.

Jan. 06, 2012 9:53 a.m. | A little less than a month after the Plan Commission gave its final approval to Kendal Lofts to have a multimillion dollar apartment complex built in downtown Waukesha, it appears it won't happen after all.

This has come after Kendal Group Ltd. developer Ken Miller and Eric Holmes, who owns the former Sign Shop property at 444 W. Main St., could not come to an agreement. Holmes' shop would have to be torn down for the apartment complex.

Originally, Holmes was going to sell his property to Miller for $75,000 less than the asking price, but Holmes has now decided not to sell.

The apartment complex would have been a 42-unit residential building on W. Main St. and would be built 25 feet from the Fox River.

This would have been at the site of the former now-vacant O'Brien Photography building and Holmes' adjacent sign shop.

Jan. 05, 2012 5:13 p.m. | Waukesha -- A judge ruled Thursday that the state Government Accountability Board needs to take more aggressive action to vet recall signatures that are expected to be submitted in two weeks against Gov. Scott Walker and other Republican office holders.

The ruling by Waukesha County Circuit Judge J. Mac Davis came in a case filed Dec. 15 by Walker's campaign committee and Stephan Thompson, executive director of the state Republican Party, asking Davis to order the accountability board to seek out and eliminate duplicate and fictitious signatures and illegible addresses in recall petitions.

Davis, who refused to enter injunctions in the case, based his decision on his interpretation of state law, more than on equal protection arguments brought up by the Republicans. He also said that the board must take "reasonable" efforts to eliminate such signatures.

Kevin Kennedy, director and general counsel of the board, said after the hearing that his organization would have to discuss the decision to see what it needed to change in procedures already in place.

In court, Kennedy testified that entering signatures into a database to look for duplicates could take eight extra weeks for his staff, and could cost $94,000 for software and outside help.

Jan. 05, 2012 4:34 p.m. | Waukesha - The Salvation Army of Waukesha has tallied up the totals from its red kettle campaign and came up with $417,000 - about 4% more than its goal, Maj. Carol Lemirand said Thursday.

Mailed donations are still coming in, but Lemirand said she hopes that by the end of the month, the combined total will exceed the organization's overall goal of $640,000, slightly more than was raised last year.

"We continue to be amazed at how the community responds to the struggles of people every day," she said.

Lemirand said more volunteers were recruited this year, which probably contributed to the increase, but there is also room for more as some kettles were left unattended.

Jan. 04, 2012 2:36 p.m. | Waukesha - One of three candidates who filed for the 12th District aldermanic seat doesn't live in the district, so an announced primary won't be necessary, Clerk-Treasurer Tom Neill said Wednesday.

Erik Rhine, 23, a political science graduate of Louisiana State University who, in announcing his candidacy, said he would bring "a youthful spirit of community not yet seen in local politics" to the job, lives outside the newly drawn district boundaries. Redistricting adjusted for population changes identified in the 2010 census. Prior to redistricting Rhine's address was within the district.

Richard Hastings, who was appointed to the aldermanic vacancy in March, and first-time challenger Ron Kading will compete for the seat in April.